This invention relates generally to automotive roof systems and, more particularly, relates to a latching system for retaining a convertible roof apparatus.
Rigid hardtop convertible roofs have been used on a variety of automotive vehicles. Some of these conventional convertible hardtop roofs are stored in a generally vertical orientation and some are stored in a predominantly horizontal orientation. Furthermore, some of these conventional hardtop roofs fold in a clam-shelling manner while others are collapsible in an overlapping manner. Examples of traditional hardtop convertible roofs are disclosed in the following patents: U.S. Pat. No. 6,347,828 entitled “Actuation Mechanism for a Two Piece Retractable Hardtop Roof for an Automobile” which issued to Rapin et al. on Feb. 19, 2002; U.S. Pat. No. 6,318,793 entitled “Two Piece Retractable Hardtop Roof for an Automobile” which issued to Rapin et al. on Nov. 20, 2001; U.S. Pat. No. 5,979,970 entitled “Roof Assembly for a Convertible Vehicle” which issued to Rothe et al. on Nov. 9, 1999; U.S. Pat. No. 5,785,375 entitled “Retractable Hardtop for an Automotive Vehicle” which issued to Alexander et al. on Jul. 28, 1998; U.S. Pat. No. 5,769,483 entitled “Convertible Motor Vehicle Roof” which issued to Danzl et al. on Jun. 23, 1998; U.S. Pat. No. 5,743,587 entitled “Apparatus for Use in an Automotive Vehicle having a Convertible Roof System” which issued to Alexander et al. on Apr. 28, 1998; and EPO Patent Publication No. 1 092 580 A1 which was published on Apr. 18, 2001. The U.S. patents are incorporated by reference herein.
In accordance with the present invention, a hardtop convertible roof apparatus is provided. In another aspect of the present invention, rigid, hardtop front and/or rear roof sections are employed. A further aspect of the present invention provides a header latch assembly capable of conveniently and reliably latching the front roof section to a front header. In yet another aspect of the present invention, a panel-to-panel latch assembly is provided that selectively couples the front roof section to the rear roof section in response to the latching of the front roof section to the front header.
Further areas of applicability of the present invention will become apparent from the detailed description provided hereinafter. It should be understood that the detailed description and specific examples, while indicating the preferred embodiment of the invention, are intended for purposes of illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention.